The government’s currency exchange, according to President Major General Muhammadu Buhari (retired), is not intended to target innocent citizens but rather corrupt individuals and terror financiers who are hoarding illegal funds.
He also promised Nigerians that the government would make sure that any disruptions to the whole supply chain brought on by the currency swap would not have an adverse effect on them or their companies.
In a statement released on Saturday and signed by Garba Shehu, the senior special assistant to the president for media and publicity, Buhari was responding to reports of huge lines of people waiting for hours to exchange their old notes for new ones.
President Buhari promises that the government would end the currency exchange “pressure” and “chaos.”
The Naira 200, 500, and 1000 notes will be redesigned, the Central Bank of Nigeria said in November.
It stated that all old notes must be turned in to commercial banks by January 31, 2023.
The CBN governor, Godwin Emefiele, informed journalists at the State House on November 23, 2022, when the new Naira notes were unveiled, that the January deadline remained sacred and would not be changed for any reason.
Nigerians are getting closer to the deadline, but The PUNCH says that the amount of replacement notes in circulation has been woefully inadequate.
Furthermore, the majority of commercial banks still give their customers the old notes through their automated teller machines.
Buhari reaffirmed that the currency changes were targeted at people hoarding illicit funds and not the average person in response to reports of long lines of people waiting for hours for their turn to deposit old notes and get new ones. This infuriated the public and drew criticism from the opposition.
He claimed that in order to stop fraud, corruption, and the funding of terrorism as well as to stabilize and improve the economy, the measures had become necessary.
“While acknowledging that the most vulnerable members of society are struggling since they frequently hold cash at home for various expenses, President Buhari issued unequivocal guarantees that the government will not abandon them to their fate.
According to the statement, “He reaffirmed that a variety of initiatives by the Central Bank and other commercial banks are underway to speed up distribution of the new notes and do all required to prevent cash crunch and panic.”
Recall that Bola Tinubu, the presidential candidate for the All Progressives Congress, claimed on Wednesday that efforts to undermine the February poll included changing the currency.
In an effort to thwart the election and his predicted triumph, Tinubu pointed to the ongoing gasoline issue and the Central Bank of Nigeria’s redesign of the currency.
The former Lagos governor spoke in Yoruba during the APC presidential campaign event at the MKO Abiola stadium in Kuto, Abeokuta, Ogun State. They oppose the outcome of this election. They intend to ruin it.
“They have begun raising the concern of ‘no fuel. Don’t worry; if the fuel runs out, we will walk to the polls.
“We will win the election whether you hide the gasoline, raise the price, or change the ink on the naira notes. If they want, they can claim there is no fuel, and we will go there (to the polling places) with our PVCs and take over the country from them.
